What to Read Over Winter Break

Winter Break is almost here!  Whether you are traveling, or spending time at home, we hope that you  have a chance to relax with some good books. Last week I sent a survey to Upper School students asking for reading suggestions, and here's what they recommended. I hope you find something of interest. And remember, there are lots of other new books in the library as well as in the Overdrive e-Book Collection.      Achebe, Chinua. Things Fall Apart.        One of Chinua Achebe's many achievements in his acclaimed first novel, Things Fall Apart, is his relentlessly unsentimental rendering of Nigerian tribal life before and after the coming of colonialism. First published in 1958, just two years before Nigeria declared independence from Great Britain, the book eschews the obvious temptation of depicting pre-colonial life as a kind of Eden. Instead, Achebe sketches a world in which violence, war, and suffering exist, but are balanced by a strong sense of tradition, ritual, and social coherence. (Tiffany)

Barnes, Jennifer  The Naturals. "Seventeen-year-old Cassie, who has a natural ability to read people, joins an elite group of criminal profilers at the FBI in order to help solve cold cases"--Provided by publisher. (Jenna and Julia) Bardugo, Leigh. Six of Crows. "Six dangerous outcasts. One impossible heist. Kaz's crew is the only thing that might stand between the world and destruction--if they don't kill each other first"--Provided by publisher. (Fudi)

Cline, Emma. The Girls. (ordered) “Spellbinding . . . A seductive and arresting coming-of-age story hinged on Charles Manson, told in sentences at times so finely wrought they could almost be worn as jewelry . . . [Emma] Cline gorgeously maps the topography of one loneliness-ravaged adolescent heart. She gives us the fictional truth of a girl chasing danger beyond her comprehension, in a Summer of Longing and Loss.”—The New York Times Book Review (Sage) Du Maurier, Daphne, Rebeccca  With these words, the reader is ushered into an isolated gray stone mansion on the windswept Cornish coast, as the second Mrs. Maxim de Winter recalls the chilling events that transpired as she began her new life as the young bride of a husband she barely knew. For in every corner of every room were phantoms of a time dead but not forgotten—a past devotedly preserved by the sinister housekeeper, Mrs. Danvers: a suite immaculate and untouched, clothing laid out and ready to be worn, but not by any of the great house's current occupants. (Astri)         Hesse, Monica.  Girl in the Blue Coat."Girl in the Blue Coat is a powerful, compelling coming-of-age story set against the dark and dangerous backdrop of World War II. It's an important and page-turning look at the choices all of us--including young adults--have to make in wartime. A beautiful combination of heartbreak, loss, young love, and hope." -Kristin Hannah (Aeven)

Hinton, S. E. The Outsiders.The struggle of three brothers to stay together after their parent's death and their quest for identity among the conflicting values of their adolescent society. (Noran)

King, A. S.  Still Life With Tornado.  "A talented 16-year-old artist slowly discovers the history of domestic violence behind why her brother left the family years earlier, and why she suddenly cannot make art"--Provided by publisher. (Ava) Letts, Billie.  Shoot the Moon. A man's desperate search for his identity drives this riveting offering from the author of best-sellers Where the Heart Is (1995) and The Honk and Holler Opening Soon (1998). No one in sleepy DeClare, Oklahoma, has forgotten the 1972 murder of pretty Cherokee Gaylene Harjo and the abduction of her infant son, Nicky Jack. Hard-nosed deputy sheriff Oliver "O Boy" Daniels pinned the blame on local preacher Joe Dawson, but few in town believed the kindly Joe was capable of such an act. Powerful emotions resurface 30 years later, when Nicky Jack, adopted and raised by a rich couple in Beverly Hills, mysteriously reappears, determined to learn about his mother and the circumstances surrounding her death. Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved (Olivia)

Levithan, David. Every Day. Every morning A wakes in a different person's body, in a different person's life, learning over the years to never get too attached, until he wakes up in the body of Justin and falls in love with Justin's girlfriend, Rhiannon. (Jiamin) Mc Lain, Paula.  The Paris Wife . Meeting through mutual friends in Chicago, Hadley is intrigued by brash "beautiful boy" Ernest Hemingway, and after a brief courtship and small wedding, they take off for Paris, where Hadley makes a convincing transformation from an overprotected child to a game and brave young woman who puts up with impoverished living conditions and shattering loneliness to prop up her husband's career. (Fudi) Millet, Lydia. Pills and Starships.  In a future Earth with an ecosystem destroyed by humans, teens Nat and Sam are in Hawaii to go through the 5-day process of their parents ending their long lives. Nat is given a book to write down her thoughts about her parents choosing to die and that is what we are reading. She is ambivalent and goes along with the program at the 'death resort' out of respect for her parents' and their decision. But her younger brother Sam is not sanguine; he's angry and rebellious and isn't following the plan. (Charlotte)

Morrison, Toni. Sula. Two girls who grow up to become women. Two friends who become something worse than enemies. In this brilliantly imagined novel, Toni Morrison tells the story of Nel Wright and Sula Peace, who meet as children in the small town of Medallion, Ohio. Their devotion is fierce enough to withstand bullies and the burden of a dreadful secret. It endures even after Nel has grown up to be a pillar of the black community and Sula has become a pariah. But their friendship ends in an unforgivable betrayal—or does it end? Terrifying, comic, ribald and tragic, Sula is a work that overflows with life. Amazon Review (Asante)

Orwell, George, 1984. Nineteen Eighty-Four is a rare work that grows more haunting as its futuristic purgatory becomes more real. Published in 1949, the book offers political satirist George Orwell's nightmare vision of a totalitarian, bureaucratic world and one poor stiff's attempt to find individuality. The brilliance of the novel is Orwell's prescience of modern life--the ubiquity of television, the distortion of the language--and his ability to construct such a thorough version of hell. Required reading for students since it was published, it ranks among the most terrifying novels ever written.  (Leah)

Yancey, Richard. The 5th Wave. "Cassie Sullivan, the survivor of an alien invasion, must rescue her young brother from the enemy with help from a boy who may be one of them"--Provided by publisher. (Leah)(Brianna)

McCandless, Carine. The Wild Truth. The Wild Truth is an important book on two fronts: It sets the record straight about a story that has touched thousands of readers, and it opens up a conversation about hideous domestic violence hidden behind a mask of prosperity and propriety. In the more than twenty years since the body of Chris McCandless was discovered in the wilds of Alaska, his spellbinding story has captivated millions who have either read Jon Krakauer's iconic Into the Wild or seen Sean Penn's acclaimed film of the same name. And yet, only one person has truly understood what motivated Chris's unconventional decision to forsake his belongings, abandon his family, and embrace the harsh wilderness.--Amazon review (Elizabeth)               Ware, Ruth. In a Dark, Dark Wood.  Ruth Ware's In a Dark, Dark Wood has all the hallmarks of a good psychological thriller-- a woman lured back to a past she's spent a decade trying to escape, a few unstable characters, and a shocking death. The impending marriage of Nora's best friend from that long ago time brings her to a glass-walled cabin deep in the woods, for a hen party (the U.K. equivalent of a bachelorette weekend). But why is she there when the two haven't spoken since Nora fled their college town ten years ago? As the party gets underway things start to take a dark turn that builds with each passing moment. In a Dark, Dark Wood is a slow burn, each revelation and obfuscation luring the reader at an ever faster pace towards its ultimate life and death conclusion.--Amazon Review, Seira Wilson (Charlotte)

Gabrielle. The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry : A Novel. Fikry, the irascible owner of Island Books, has recently endured some tough years: his wife has died, his bookstore is experiencing the worst sales in its history, and his prized possession, a rare edition of Poe poems has been stolen. Over time, he has given up on people, and even the books in his store, instead of offering solace, are yet another reminder of a world that is changing too rapidly. Until a most unexpected occurrence gives him the chance to make his life over and see things anew. Gabrielle Zevin's enchanting novel is a love letter to the world of books—an irresistible affirmation of why we read." (Fudi)